OP here -- We had a great weekend! Wish we could have stayed longer! Loved ROOH and, in Evanston, Comida -- not fancy, but not really hipster either. It felt like Montclair, NJ, if you know that vibe -- and I mean that as a compliment!

There’s a fancier side to Evanston and then a more hipster side. Recently went to a hipster restaurant called zentli which is Mexican street food. The food was delicious!

Anonymous wrote:Not sure if your visit has already taken place, but Virtue is a great option. The West Loop would also be convenient for your friends coming in from Madison. Lots of restaurants to choose from but I would suggest Monteverde, Eleven Eleven, Lyra, Trivoli Tavern or ROOH.

OP here -- Thanks for these great suggestions! We're booked at ROOH. We've now extended our trip on the front end so we can take our niece to see Northwestern. I would love suggestions for dinner in Evanston on Thursday night -- someplace casual would work, and again, our group eats anything. Thank you!

Not sure if your visit has already taken place, but Virtue is a great option. The West Loop would also be convenient for your friends coming in from Madison. Lots of restaurants to choose from but I would suggest Monteverde, Eleven Eleven, Lyra, Trivoli Tavern or ROOH.

In a couple of weeks DH and I will be visiting Chicago, one of our favorite cities, for the first time since 2019. We're going for a wedding and are staying on through Sunday evening so we can have dinner with friends who will be coming from Madison to meet us. We'll be staying in Hyde Park and our first choice for dinner there would be Virtue, but we're also happy to go to other parts of the city. Our group loves food of all kinds and would like a place where it's not too noisy so we can talk without shouting (we haven't seen these friends in nearly two years). Thanks, Chicagolanders, for your recommendations!